Vale do Tabua 10 Year Old Tawny Port

[Glenn E.]

Tasted with Stewart on a random Friday evening because we were thirsty.

This bottle was sent to us by a friend in Portugal who met the owners at a farmer's market. He liked their Port, thought we should try it, and talked them into providing us with a bottle free of charge.

Vale do Tábua 10 year Old Tawny Port
(intentionally spelled wrong in the Subject line to make it easier for the TNDB)

Color: Mostly tawny with some hints of red. It looks more like a 20 year old than a typical 10 year old, but there's no green at the rim so it is clearly a younger tawny.

Nose: Figs, dates, very faint esteva, and some overripe strawberry. The esteva is difficult to process because it is more stalky or stemmy than normal, but not at all in a bad way. It's also less minty than normal, which is good because that would be weird in a tawny Port.

Palate: It basically tastes like it smells. Ripe figs, soft faint dates, overripe strawberry, soft dried apricot. It is mostly just sweet on entry but then the flavors come and it develops some complexity. There's a distinct note of Douro bake, but it fits with the wine's character so isn't a flaw. This is a very distinctive and interesting 10 year old because it has many flavors that you wouldn't expect until a 20 or 30 year old, but it is fairly straightforward.

Score: 88 points. I can't think of anything else like it at this level - you get many characteristics of a 20 year old, but they're simplified and of course in a 10 year old package. Vale do Tábua also makes a 40 year old that I will have to try the next time I'm in Portugal.